LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) – UNLV's Ilia Snitari is just the second men's tennis player in conference history to be named both Mountain West Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year as the league announced its annual awards Tuesday night on the eve of the tournament championship.
Snitari, a native of Moldova who finally made it onto the court in March, has not yet lost in singles play, going 7-0, including 5-0 vs. MW opponents. He is also 3-1 in doubles, including 2-1 vs. league foes.
This marked the 11th time that a Rebel won a conference player of the year honor and the first time since 2022. Snitari is the fourth MW Freshman of the Year from UNLV and the first since 2013. He joins Air Force's Shannon Buck (2003) in winning both awards in the same year.
Joining Snitari on the All-MW Singles Team this year was Illia Maksymchuk. The junior from Ukraine leads the squad with 21 singles victories. He turned in a spectacular fall tournament season, going 14-3 and winning the inaugural Mountain West Qualifier event.
Both players hope to extend their season when UNLV faces New Mexico in Wednesday's quarterfinals of the league tournament, which is being hosted by the Amanda and Stacy Darling Tennis Center in Las Vegas.
All men's matches, including Friday's final, are scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. The winner earns an automatic bid to the NCAA Men's Tennis Tournament. Live stream coverage will be available throughout the 2025 Mountain West Championship on PlaySight with commentary for the championship match on April 26. Live scoring can be found on iOnCourt.
Visit the Championship Central page at themw.com for more information on the tournament, including tickets, where to watch, official brackets and more.
UNLV ALL-TIME CONFERENCE PLAYERS OF THE YEAR
2025 – Ilia Snitari (MW)
2022 -- Christopher Bulus (MW)
2018 -- Alexandr Cozbinov (MW)
2017 -- Jakob Amilon (MW)
2011 -- Mehdi Bouras (MW)
2005 -- Henner Nehles (MW)
1996 -- Roger Pettersson (Big West)
1995 -- Roger Pettersson (Big West)
1994 -- Roger Pettersson (Co) (Big West)
1987 -- Scott Warner (PCAA)
1986 -- Scott Warner (PCAA)
UNLV ALL-TIME CONFERENCE FRESHMEN OF THE YEAR
2025 – Ilia Snitari (MW)
2013 -- Gilad Berman (MW)
2009 -- Mehdi Bouras (MW)
2002 -- Aviram Salomon (MW)
